Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Being a huge durian fan, I am more than happy to make another dessert using this fruit. This time it’s durian AND chocolate!

Okay, some of you might be going “Ewwwwww! That’s gross!” Well, actually not at all, some things you’ll never know until you try. The ‘star’ of this is not the durian, but the lovely chocolate crust, recipe from Ilva of Lucilian Delights.

I first came across this crust recipe over at Gattina’s(which is why I also adapted her method), and I’ve been wanting to make them for a long time. Finally the chance came for these Chocolate Tartlets with Durian Filling.

I absolutely love the chocolate crust. It’s buttery, chocolate-y, not too sweet, and ‘shortcrust-y', everything I would like in a tart crust. Cocoa powder tends to be a bit ‘drying’, but this is not so at all. Besides making these tartlets, I also used them for cut-out cookies, which turned out highly addictive. If you’re looking for a great chocolate tart crust, this is it!

The good thing about this combination is, neither the crust nor the filling overpowers the other. Although durian has a strong taste, the chocolate actually managed to ‘tame’ it down, allowing the slight bitterness of the crust to come through.

1) Sift the first three ingredients to combine.2) Cream butter and sugar until creamy. Add in egg yolks one by one, and beat until well combined.3) Add in dry ingredients, mix to form a smooth dough. Divide dough into two pieces, shape into a disk, wrap in cling film and chill for 30 minutes.4) Working on one disc at a time, roll out to about slightly less than 0.5cm. Use the tartlet tins or cookie cutter to cut the dough to fit the tins. Cover the lined tins and freeze for 10 mins.5) Bake in a pre-heated 180C for about 20 to 25 mins. Remove from the oven, cool for about 2-3 mins before gently easing the tartlets out of the tins. Cool completely before filling.

* I only used half of the dough to make about 9 tartlets (6cm diameter) plus some cut-out cookies. For the other half, I just wrapped it well and popped it into the freezer.

For the durian filling, simply remove the flesh from the seeds, and pass through a sift to remove fibres. Chill until ready to fill the tartlets.

Oh how much I love this tart even I don't eat durian! Imagining the bitter-sweet (choco) and the floral-sweet (durian), maybe I should be starting out this way to taste durian! Angie, your fingers fill with artistic cells... gorgeous tarts!So, still the work tight you up? *hug hug*

Hey, everybody got different taste lah. No need to feel paiseh lah. But guess what? The more I makan the more I'm used to the bittersweet taste now, hee. So I no need to add more sugar liao - less sugar is healthy *wink*

hi angie, it's me eliza over at Notes from My Food Diary...this is something that i might try next time. i love durian only after it's cooked as opposed to fresh! i love the smell but not the texture :)